FALL RIVER — It’s one thing to have well-meaning adults talk at students during assemblies in large auditoriums about the harms of behaviors like sexting and the inappropriate use of social media.

It’s another entirely to have students talking among themselves about those same issues.

B.M.C. Durfee High School’s student leaders said they believe the latter to be the more effective and powerful approach, which is one of the reasons a group of them was seen recently at Bridgewater State University working on a presentation on the subject.

The Durfee students presented to student groups from other schools. They indicated their purpose there was to work out the kinks of their presentation.

It began with brainstorming, according to Durfee senior Nick Raposo, who is also president of the school’s Student Government Association. He explained the thought process.

“Why don’t we come up with something as students? We can associate with topics much more than adults can. Why don’t we do a social media presentation? If it’s successful here, we can take it back to Durfee,” Raposo said.

Then they would approach Durfee’s student groups and athletic teams with the presentation and the conversation would continue to spread with team members and other students passing the message along virally.

The group noted the myriad implications of misusing social media and cellphone-based technology that can be long-lasting. There are the legal issues, such as criminal charges that can stem from underage sexting.

Then there are other issues. Students’ pages on social media sites, like Facebook and Twitter, are not just viewed by people in their social and family circles. Potential employers and college admissions officers often peruse them when reviewing applicants. As many as 26 percent report that they do.

The presentation starts with an icebreaker. The students stand in a semicircle near the front of the classroom. Raposo, holding a ball of yarn, introduces himself.

“Hi, I’m Nick. I have Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.”

He explains as he tosses the ball of yarn, representing a fictional posted message, to another student that those messages spread via text messaging and social media from person to person just like that ball of yarn. It becomes a tangled mess. And it’s difficult to determine where it originated. It’s also permanent.

“Even if you delete it, the message will still be out there ... I Snapchatted Nick’s Facebook post,” said Lucas Fernandes. “He can’t take it back.”

The students explained that there have been some issues with social media recently.

Fall River made headlines in the region this past January, when a Facebook page called Fall River Hooters appeared that allegedly displayed graphic nude photos of local students. The 17-year-old boy responsible for the page was arrested and charged with dissemination of obscene material harmful to minors and possession of child pornography.

Page 2 of 2 - “We thought it was a big issue,” said Keegan Murphy. “We wanted to stop the negative attention.”

“If it’s happening to our school, it could happen in other places,” added Megan Rockett, another senior.

Working with FRED TV, the group has also produced a series of public service announcements called “Think Before You Click.” Its message centers on students having reputations to uphold.